Day 4 of the yak

 So what do you say about stage 4 if the Yak? Believe it or not I had a very positive state of mind most of the day. Not really an experience I thought I would have today. Unlike other hard days I have had. Normally the mind is busy with tactics and strategies. 

But that was racing for podiums and not in a place like this. My inner voice instead of saying this is stupid, I should quit, or slow up was saying what the f&#@ am I doing? :) but in the good way. 

The views of peaks, valleys, and people were awesome. 

I had a good start but faded after 4hrs. Might be the 2x10 with a 26 tooth granny. My little chicken legs are going to be huge! I think stairs and a lot of low cadence work would have helped. That and not losing my precious chocolate. 

I would most definitely be interested in coming back to this region for trekking/climbing. There is a guy here who is in the know and talking about 6500m treks. Keeps the risk lower. I can't imagine what it would be like looking down on these valleys and peaks. 

We left Besisehar and left noisy civilization behind. It what they call a jeep track but is more like ATV trail most of the time. It meanders into the sides of the valleys and back out for some amazing views. Tried to take some pictures but the camera lens got foggy. 

I think this is the Nepal people get excited telling you about. I will say the same thing about here as the Grand Canyon or Banff. No picture makes sense until you experience it. It feels like I have a deeper understanding and a sense of perspective about how small we are and how massive and beautiful spits in the world are. Man I have to lay off the happy smokes getting all deep like that! Just kidding Mom. 

Although this has been some serious km and vert most of the riders are not really complaining. More like commeting. I have been to other stage races and there has been  complaining about every thing from the trail to Tue food to the accommodations. Here with this gang even if you didn't know what you were in for, it does warranty complaining. Bags are late, food can take over 1hr like it did last night, the trial but whatever. I think its a combination of where you are, managing the expectations and knowing the locals really are trying to help you out. 
Is this race for everyone, hell no! I would have to advise anyone thinking about doing it to have a long introspective chat with someone who has done it. 

Is Nepal for everyone? Hell ya! Land in Katmandu, spend a day marvelling at the massive chaos of humanity and get out.

More pictures

Kate with Keevy and Thomas. Erik hanging out and back to his normal chatty self.

Some pictures.

In Asia number 13 is lucky so no need to turn it upside down. And the start of the 10km downhill time trial.

day 3 yak attack

Neat stage today, time trial format with fastest going last, oh and ya it was a  10kms descent.

TRaffic was terrible with all the tractors commuting uphill first thing in the morning. We are riding on open roads. There is not really single track. Every corner you go around you could come head first into a truck, car, motorbike, scooter, bicycle, person, cow, goat, dog, car, goat, pothole, or cliff. Riding in control is mandatory.

the downhill ended onto the first but not last pavement of the day. Although she doesnt believe me I was right behind Kate.

We are riding with some interesting people. The first person to pass me was Garret who ride fir Lampre in the Tour de France in 2004? Getting 4th in a stage.

I caught up to Kate and we ride the rest the day together pacing ourselves for tomorrow 10,000ft day.

Having trouble posting photos so will try later

Canada to Kathmandu, the adventure starts....(a late post of the first leg)

It was hard enough getting almost everything wrapped up before I left, thought it would be clear skies. Nope, here comes the turbulence.  WestJet an hour late, down graded to economy after paying for more leg room for 14 hour flight. Good news was I put on my diplomatic hat and got Kate and I our own row, which lead to the row behind us (also empty), which lead to a most enjoyable 14 hour flight.  Sleeping sideways in the seats and having Kate over for dinner are just bits of the fun.

The connection was 45min which was enough for us but not our luggage.  When we arrived in Kathmandu our luggage was still in Vancouver.  Things don't move as efficiently as Canada, no wait, its airplane luggage, around the world they can screw that one up. We were well taken care of by the baggage guy while fighting off a gang of gentlemen who wanted my spot, no matter where I was standing. I planted my feet, pushed back and was able to conclude my business. Kate's photo to follow, 1000 words.

By the time we got to the hotel it was midnight and we had been traveling for over 24hrs. A short stand off with Kate and the check in clerk and we had 2 separate beds not one single, I didn't care either way, as I had called 'big spoon'.

We woke up 7 hrs later feeling okay and were off to breakfast. Gerry and Erik were in the lobby chatting with the friends they have made already. They showed us a lovely picture of us sleeping as we had forgot to lock our door.

They were rather excited to share their experiences and get downtown. To sit in their new favorite coffee shop and chill.

The Road to Kathmandu is littered with pot holes, no literally. The ride from the airport I figured was the traditional route that allows one to bleed into their kidneys for a good cleansing.  Nope, just trying to fix the old pot holes with new more strategically placed pot holes.

I have been to south east Asia before so was aware of the method of driving, everyone for themselves. Kate was most surprised by the number of times we did not get into a head on collision.

The coffee shop was a good as it gets. Good vibe, good cappuccino,  good friends, with good talks. We walked around a bit and I noticed some of the similarities to my other travels. Photos to follow.

Met Ayman the Nepalese riding Gerry and Erik had befriended.  He is the fixer and will get you a sim card for your phone, change money at a better rate than banks, or tear your legs off on a ride.

Lunch and then a massage where the slight women tried her hardest to tear my arms and legs off with a style that can be described as a blend of deep tissue and professional wrestling.

We headed back to the airport to get our luggage only to find I am fated To suffer like Sisyphus on the road to the airport. No luggage, going to arrive 9 hours before start of race.

Slept well, for 6 hours at least. Blogging and off to coffee.

Day 2 yak attack

Interesting day to say the least!

For some cruel, cruel reason they combined 2 stages into 1. They took 2 40km and combined them into an 80km, 2900m vert day. With 4 major climbs. Remember those numbers cause I sure didn't.  Lucky for me it was steady state for the fist small hill of 1800m over 10km. Found myself with a new group of fellas and was feeling pretty good about myself.

Long descent and found then I was riding with 2 Nepalese guys who have won the race before and our friend Thomas from Belgium. Good pace and off to second went well.

Long cross valley section which was kind of cute for the little Nepalese guys.  One of them weighs 47kg! That's 103.6lbs. As Jay would say " I haven't weigh that since grade 8". The benefit of 80kg is that inertia keeps the whhels turn thru the dead spot of the pedal stroke, also lets me coast downhill while they pedal what little ass they have off.

Actually went into 3 rd climb with Thomas ahead of Raj Jiv and Auman.
The grade stepped up and Auman had his revenge, so did Thomas as he had a 24 tooth front ring and I had a 26 tooth. It was keep up and blow up but didn't do that. Aumen caught me about a 2/3 of the way, he saw that the Old Mule (me) was beaten. With a big smile he asked if I need a gel, answer? On if ha estra- translation- "only if you have an extra". I don't think it would matter super nice guy probably would have given me his last gel.

He took off, I suffered to top of climb to aid station. I drank 1.5 liters of water, 2 cookie bars, and 3 bananas. Had a nice smile on my face by the time I got to the bottom and was feelin' good. That didn't last long.

I did catch up to Cory Wallace onky because he is sick and took a 10min nap. He rode with me for a bit and was looking for ice cream in every little shop we past. He didn't see any which was odd considering the number of ice cream wrappers on the ground?

Quiz-Remember the distance and climbs? Good on ya. I didn't. I was sure I had another long descent and a climb finish. What it actually was was a shallow descent and shallow climb. I have been using the, "if your not there then you have not gone far enough" mantra. So there I was thinking I had kms to go and a climb all the time fading fast. Stopped for a coke, poured it into water bottle then rode 100m to Finish! Yep was just on the other side of the building.

I don't know how the legs will feel tomorrow but I am feeling pretty good after 2 plates of egg noodles and my coke.

First 2 sites of the morning

Read carefully!

Jeff bit of a rough start

I wrote one of ny best blogs describing my adventure but it didn't save. I will try to get you the back story but here is the recap of day 1

Day 1 

3km group ride then a stop at the army base entrance. 10a start with stiff climb to start then rolling up. Didn't go too deep but kept tempo up and stuck with a few guys. Caught up to Auman went over top with 2 guys. My down billing was terrible to start and US guy yelling go go. Let them pass. 

Came around corner and there was the Himalayan mountaion range. Long decent,hands hurt, got flat right near bottom. Put tube in went a few fewer and got second flat. Kate and Erik passed me as well as others. Got going and made good time in the river valley. New game of dodging trucks, cars, motorcycles, dogs, cats, goats people, puddles and potholes. 

Caught up to Erik had to stop and clean chain, he gave me lube for chain. Worked magic, other rider attacked as we exchanged lube, bad form. Ride him down and then passed on final hill on the day. 

Thought day was only going to be 29km but it was 29miles. Was pretty angry climbing last 6km hill. Was hot and steep and long. Kept a nice pace and caught 2guys. Kate beat me in and has impressed many. Crossed finish line and went start to store for coke. 

Couldn't find hotel, ride around mountain top town for a bit.  Kate secured honeymoon suite with a view. Had a nice lunch. Showered and hung around in towel. Bags didn't get here for 2 hours after we arrived. Legs up for a bit, bags arrived Dressed and then cleaned bike. Santos helped with getting new tread on and good to go. 

Testing the Gear and Body

It was a good week getting things sorted out for the Yak Attack. I had another full week of training and work but the fatigue levels are were they should be, something i will really need to keep an eye on.

I think chronic fatigue is one of the biggest detriments for athletes. When you are new to a sport or training regime it easy to realize gains but this doesn't mean you should. A steady progressive march towards your goals is better than binge training. I have written down my plan and i am going to stick to it. Can I do more each workout, yes, should I? No. i am going to build right up to the last weekend and take a break and taper. I have rest weeks built into my program and rest days that I will adhere to. I can't afford to get sick or injured in the next month. I just wrote that for 2 reasons, one so that i remember to do it and 2 to maybe share that everyone, even the coach takes rest time. "trai

Last weekend was the first big back to back days. Saturday I rode tempo to Bragg Creek and back. Beautiful, warm, blue sky day. Which can only mean one thing-Chinook winds!! i just kept thinking about how bad the winds might be in Nepal in the steep river valleys. Amazing how perspective changes everything. Didn't even care about the head wind.

I had just explained to my cycling class the benefits of Tempo riding and how we used to do the "Tempo Challenge" on cold Saturday mornings. we would break it up into 20 minute intervals and I would provide a buffet table of snacks and drinks. the big challenge was to get to 120 minutes of Tempo and that was my goal Saturday. Felt good going out and coming back, must of been to power snack at Cinnamon spoons.

Sunday Alana and I were off to Canmore to get me some 45Nrth Wolvhammer winter biking boots. Lots of the Phat tyre crowd, including Kate and Greg have these and go on about them. A stop into Rebound cycle a consultation with Technical Adviser Ryan Draper and I was off with a size 44 and some awesome BarMitts. Thanks for getting me set up for the cold weather!!

Alana and I decided to hike Ha Ling Peak with the new Yak Attack Back Pack (fun to say twice, go on, try it)

 Good thing I won't have to worry about tress in Nepal!

 Ahh this is more like the Yak Attack!!

 Looking down Goat Creek towards Banff, no you can't actually see Banff

About 1.5 hours up, will be more like 3-4 on stage 7.

My coach making sure I didn't turn around too soon, cracking the whip on the poor Mule!!

Minutes old and comfortable as all get out, Thanks Ryan and Rebound!!

On our way out of town we dropped by to say hi to Greg and Flora and they sat us down and made real cocao and organic corn chowder!! It's nice when your friends know exactly what you need.

How to train for the Yak Attack

In this Episode Jeff will try to shed some light on how to train for a race in Nepal where they describe your day, not in % single track, double track, or road, but in % rideable!

It looks like this race is divided into 3 different flavors, the first 3 days are at an altitude similar to Calgary so will be pedal spinning racing. the next 4 days, one of which is an acclimation day, are survival. This includes the 17,760 foot pass! and a lot of hiking. Then it appears we just go down hill until a group ride on the last day.

Our Canadian Cartel is Erik Bakke, Kate Aardal, Gerry "The Ger" McQuaig, and myself. Each of us has a lot of stage race experience but they are starting to freak me out with all the prep they are doing. UV bottle here, GPS maps there, Back pack where??? (more on the back pack below). Gerry is in perpetual fitness because he just never stops, Erik only needs to stop work at his high paced job and he gets in shape, and Kate is finishing her 3rd or 4th training camp, or something like that. I spent most of last summer and fall working so I did not get into my usual level of Base fitness. Cross was good because I could fake my way thru a 50 minute workout and a 1 hour race, but a 3 hour ride?? Let me tell you how that went....

2 Saturdays ago Erik, Kate and myself left Cadence at 9am and it was -9C. Dressing for the +3 high we were all a little cold to start and Kate wanted us to see how great of form she had developed down south. Erik and I held on and we enjoyed a nice 2.5 hour ride to Cochrane thru some of the back road, cross field, up coulee, down stream bed routes they make up.

By the time I got to Cochrane I was shelled, done, burnt, bonked, tired. I ate light but had 2 coffees with lots of cream and off we went. Blue skies and a west wind. Ah, that west wind held the snow and cold they were forecasting. Started as rain to get you wet, turned to cold and snow to freeze you and pushed you so hard you geared out so you couldn't generate any heat. Kate actually coasted for 5km without pedaling, even on the ups. Made it home, napped, ate, napped, ate. slept. Did not go on ride Sunday.

During the weeks I have been up early to make sure i can get my workouts done. They are pretty simple and short but that makes them attainable. Monday is 20 minutes at threshold, Wednesday is Tabattas ( high end 15 second intervals), Thursday is the class I teach in Currie Barracks and then its Saturday agian.

Last Saturday, when it was +9, Ryan Young and i headed out for a ride. No plan just a ride. We did some good tempo, met up with Warren Muir, had a lovely chat, met a new friend Gabrielle, who drafted us but did buy us a coffee in Bragg and then cooked it home. Eat, nap, eat, nap, eat, sleep.

I am trying to get in leg strength, Threshold, and tempo rides in hopes my body remembers what it can do.

What about the hiking Jeff??? Yes, the hiking. Well no use going hiking unless i am carrying my bike right??
So I have plans to go this weekend and this is what Alana and I have created.

I bought, cut and heated some plexi-glass to form a cradle that slides into the bladder poach on my Camel Back!!!! It is light weight, custom made to fit, and allows me to get the bike on and off without too much trouble. Also allows my hands to be free so I can get my hands out for the eventual fall that will happen.

Prototype ready! i will let you know how it goes.